Me and Paulo Coelho....how the universe conspired to cross our paths.

On February 12, 2008 I was dealt what seemed a pretty harsh card two days before Valentine's. After our first big fight my boyfriend decided he didn't want to be with me anymore because "my beliefs worried him, my convictions were too strong, and I was too humanitarian." Okay? I had gotten to a point in my life where the most important thing to me was to be able to be me anytime. This meant that everything that worried him about me was everything I liked about myself so we would have no resolution and parting ways was the best move to make even if it felt abrupt.

Instead of going to Santa Barbara with him for Valentine's I went home to Austin to cry the night's away in the company of my sister in my favorite city. As I departed for the airport I grabbed the latest Paulo Coelho novel The Witch of Portobello, which had remained on my nightstand unopened because I had been touring with my play. As I began reading it on the plane ride I could not put it down. I was identifying with the Witch of Portobello's desire to be seen and loved for who she was and her struggles with many including her mother to let her be and accept her and her choices. Once in Austin I couldn't put the book down. I sat in the corner of my sister's apartment with my tea looking out the window at my favorite thing, nature, while finding absolute solace in a woman just like me. A woman named Athena.

When I returned home to Los Angeles I told my mom I would be emailing Coelho and asking him to let me read for the role of Athena if they ever turned it into a film. I knew I was born to play her. I never got around to emailing him that night and I wouldn't have to because the next day in my inbox was an email from goodreads.com and in it was an interview with Coelho. As I read it I froze because about halfway through he mentioned a film competition he was having based on The Witch of Portbello. My sign had come and the what next my ex constantly questioned after the tour of my play ended and my third commercial in a row went unaired, had arrived. The catch was my ex had to leave my life in order for me to live my way into the what next! What I mean is what if I had gone to Santa Barbara with him and left the book on my nightstand...thank God I don't have to find out. ;-) I do thank him for what he brought me in those brief months together but I have come understand quite clearly that I was unknowingly using him as a band aid to forget someone else, the man I thought to be my soulmate. Now I know bandaids don't work because once gone the wound is still there and today three years after meeting my "soulmate" life has shown me he is not my soulmate. Oh what the winds of change bring with them if you allow them to. But I've gone off track....

So I entered the film competition and in three months adapted the novel, hired the crew, cast the film, produced it and starred in it. As Athena of course. This is the brief version minus details of all the challenges I encountered during this production, which was solely financed by me. Hey when the universe presents you with a stituation that exceeds anything you dreamt of, to me, you follow through and leave the rest including the mystery and magic of what the unknown can bring to the universe. I went on to win the film competition in the Samira category from over 6000 International entries and of course went on to meet Paulo Coelho

We are now friends and I have to say emailing with the person whose books helped me not give up my dream and career in LA is still a bit surreal so you can imagine collaborating on a film with him EXCEEDED any dream I ever held for myself. If you allow God (or whatever you believe in) and the universe to co pilot this journey with you, you will live what some people believe to be impossible. I will say this Coelho was right when he said that when you are ready the universe conspires with you to make all your dreams come true. He writes this often and for me it has proven to be true. I want to let you know that nothing has come easy and I have sacrificied A LOT but everything has been worth it because I have not only seen my dreams come to life but when they have they have also brought to life the quote, "Gods gifts put our dreams to shame."

Now as I am about to go to Rome next month for the film's premiere at the Rome Film Festival I sit in immense gratitude for having the courage to not only be me but to love me so much I would not give up who I am in order to be loved by my ex on his terms. Actually same goes for my "soulmate" because his terms were certainly never in line with me or my essence either no matter how much beauty he brought into my life. I can see that now and now that I have that clarity something tells me I am about to live my way into the what next where the unconditional love I deserve awaits me! Maybe he's in Rome but wherever he is I will say this, now more than ever I know that the possibilities are as endless as the universe and all I have to do is believe in the beauty and magic that lies in the unknown and trust that now that I am ready the universe will conspire. I revel in the magic that having the patience to live in the unknown brings me. Thank you Patrick, "soulmate", Paulo, God and the universe. You have taught me more about myself, character, and courage than you will ever know.

Take a look at these amazing moments in photos. Once I won the opening scene of my film became a part of Coelho's blog. He used it to announce the winners. I took pictures of my computer screen. First one is me and Coelho on his blog.

This one is a closer look at me on his blog. The opening scene was an imitation of the artwork of the cover of The Witch of Portobello and my friend Bev's idea.

Come fall of 2008 and eight months after my break up I met Coelho while I was in Europe where he lives and we had dinner. We discussed how my film came to be, what you just read minus the details of the major challenges I faced and then he signed my book. It reads, "Dear Adriana Follow the signs Paulo Coelho", I did and they led me to that moment!

Last but not least an article came out today in Latin Star Magazine profiling me and The Experimental Witch and it has a great quote from Paulo about me. This is it but you can read it clearly at Latin Star Magazine article
and click on The Experimental Witch when you get to that page. It's the writer's website.



You can take a look at my portion of the film at http://www.youtube.com/adrianagarzacortazar
. If there is anything this blog leaves you with I hope it is with the desire to follow your heart and passion and to let your being shine through wherever you go and in whatever you do and TRUST THAT THE REST WILL BE TAKEN CARE OF!